A Letter from Bishop Hollingsworth: 10th Anniversary of 9/11
September 6, 2011
September 5, 2011
Sisters and brothers in Christ:It has been observed repeatedly and accurately that September 11, 2001, changed America and Americans forever. Whether it has changed us for the better or for the worse is a good question. No doubt, over the last decade it has done both, and it continues to do so. While our openness to other cultures and others’ perception of us and our actions as a nation has surely increased, likewise has our suspicion of others and the isolation that comes with self-protection. Some people of faith have been challenged to learn more about the religious beliefs and practices of others, while others have used their own to qualify and judge those who believe differently.
At the same time, of course, God’s spirit of holiness continues to change us, challenging our capacity to be reconciled to such acts of violence and terror and our ability to make room in our hearts and lives for those whose differences most threaten us. In that ongoing spiritual maturation, it is important that we understand that forgiving is not the same thing as condoning, and reconciliation does not mean the abandonment of accountability. Reconciliation and forgiveness require both accountability and acceptance, and, for people of faith, the spiritual discipline of putting God’s perspective above our own.
One of the most useful vehicles we are given to aid us in that endeavor is prayer. To that end, I share with you the attached litany for your daily personal prayer or congregational worship next Sunday, September 11, adapted by the Rev. Paul Gaston for Christ Church, Hudson, from the World Council of Churches’ “prayer for the people of Norway and for all victims of violence and terror.” (A link to the original source is listed at the end of the document.)
As we mark the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the White House, I give thanks for all that you do, day in and day out, “to restore all people to unity with God and each other in Christ.”
Gratefully,
The Rt. Rev. Mark Hollingsworth, Jr.Bishop of Ohio
